The whole nine yards

[Explorer]

What does 'yards' mean in the idiomatic expression 'The whole nine yards' - a place, a measure,
or something another?

 

[SoothingDave]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_whole_nine_yards

Its origin is unknown and has been described as "the most prominent etymological riddle of our time."[SUP][2][/SUP]

 

[Explorer]

I have read the article, but what does a native speaker associate 'yards' with - with a site or with a measure?

 

[MikeNewYork]

What does 'yards' mean in the idiomatic expression 'The whole nine yards' - a place, a measure,
or something another?

More on "whole nine yards" here: http://www.word-detective.com/back-s.html#yards

 

[MikeNewYork]

I have read the article, but what does a native speaker associate 'yards' with - with a site or with a measure?

Usually an amount.

 

[SoothingDave]

I associate it with a measure. A yard is 3 feet or about 0.9 meters.

 

[MikeNewYork]

I associate it with a measure. A yard is 3 feet or about 0.9 meters.

In general, yes, but not in "whole nine yards".

 

[SoothingDave]

In general, yes, but not in "whole nine yards".

If we don't really know the origin of the phrase, then we can't really say for sure what the "yards" are. But I do think of them as a unit of measure.

Obviously, the phrase is not used literally so I don't expect "the whole 9 yards" of something to be 27 feet of something.

 

[Barb_D]

You need to think of the "yards" in "the whole nine yards" the same way you think of the "bucket" in "kick the bucket."

There are no real yards. There is no real bucket.
They are idioms and they mean what they mean. Breaking them down into their parts will not help you understand them any more. As far as what else I have to say on this, I've already given you the whole enchilada.